AG charges woman with jury tampering

JACKSON — The Mississippi Attorney General’s office has arrested a Greenville resident and charged her with jury tampering, according to Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood.

Marguerite Wilson, 31, of Greenville was arrested Oct. 15, by an investigator with the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, with the assistance of a deputy from the Washington County Sheriff’s Department.

The arrest was made on an affidavit charging the defendant with felony jury tampering.

The affidavit alleges that on or about Oct. 7, in Washington County, Marguerite Wilson intentionally, knowingly and unlawfully attempted to communicate directly or indirectly with a juror, with the intent to influence the juror’s vote, opinion, decision or other actions in a case filed by the state against Wilson this summer.

The affidavit alleges Wilson needed a juror on her side and asked the juror not to reveal to the court that she knew Wilson.

Wilson is currently a case worker for Washington County Department of Human Services and is alleged to have offered to help the juror in custody decisions of nieces and nephews in proceedings involving the Washington County Department of Human Services.

If convicted, Wilson faces a two year sentence and a fine of $3,000.

Wilson was initially arrested and charged with seven counts of medicaid fraud. At the time the crimes are alleged to have occurred, Wilson was working as a case manager for Delta Community Mental Health Center.

As with all cases, the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.